as usual, an intelligent and sensible comment by dr vijaya, a professor of philosophy
----- Forwarded Message ----
From: Vijay
Namaste Rajiv,
Your remarkable article 'Why Nityananda must resign now'.
Remarkable on all counts: patience, dedication, determination
to unravel the facts. Placing the whole episode both in its
political and philosophical context.
The long preamble explaining the background of various forms
of Yoga was useful in placing his actions in context. So also the
question of siddhis and morality.
The political aspect is alarming. To think of the detailed
conspiracy in bringing him down !
I am not sure though whether he should resign. If he can hang
in there then that would benefit his numerous followers who have
benefited from his mission. Otherwise, it would mean one more defeat
of the Hindu groups.
I am not sure too if the transparency question could have been
quickly and easily resolved, given the nature of his work in Yoga.
I do not doubt his sincerity, but I do wonder at his lack of wisdom.
Your argument also seems to be partially this: all the aspects of
Hindu spirituality should be reclaimed from Western sanitisation,
i.e. making it palatable to the West.
Neverthless, Patanjali's Yoga Sutras are clear about the role of
brahmacharya in the path towards realisation. Also, there are
warnings about the danger of merely acquiring siddhis. And all
this long before the "sanitisation" for the sake of the Western
audience.
In Tantric Yoga, there is the distinction between the Right Hand
practice and the Left Hand practice. Ramakrishna belonged to
the Right hand practice. His worship of Kali and his visions were
in the context of devotional Bhakti Hinduism. He was also
influenced by Ram Prasad. There is no suggestion at all that
Ramakrishna fell away from bramhacharya.
Vivekanda wrote on all four of the traditional Yoga: Bhakti,Jnana,
Karma and Raja Yoga. He too followed in the tradition of Patanjali
Yoga Sutras.
Adi Sankara's Sri Vidya was also meditational, using the mandalas,
the diagrams etc. And Devi worship follows this tradition. Again,
brahmacharya. Saktism also has a distinction between Left Hand and
Right. The Devi Mahatmyam is used by devotees who follow the Right
Hand tradition and as well Adi Sankara's Sri Vidya.
The other Tantric practices from the Left Hand tradition are not
largely practised except in certain places and by certain individuals.
I am not sure if even the Naga sadhus go to meditate in graveyards
or whether Kundalini Yoga followers practise the yogin-yogini practices.
Possibly Osho, yes, and his followers.
Anyhow, the article has set to rest much speculation. We can all turn
to the political scene with the new Gadkari team and Baba Ramdev's
initiative in starting a new political party.
You point out correctly that Swami Nityananda's social work raised the
ire of missionaries who were challenged by them.
Thanks for a remarkable investigative article.
Regards,
Vijaya
__________________________________________________________________
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---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Vijay
From: Vijay
----- Forwarded Message ----
From: Vijay
Namaste Rajiv,
Your remarkable article 'Why Nityananda must resign now'.
Remarkable on all counts: patience, dedication, determination
to unravel the facts. Placing the whole episode both in its
political and philosophical context.
The long preamble explaining the background of various forms
of Yoga was useful in placing his actions in context. So also the
question of siddhis and morality.
The political aspect is alarming. To think of the detailed
conspiracy in bringing him down !
I am not sure though whether he should resign. If he can hang
in there then that would benefit his numerous followers who have
benefited from his mission. Otherwise, it would mean one more defeat
of the Hindu groups.
I am not sure too if the transparency question could have been
quickly and easily resolved, given the nature of his work in Yoga.
I do not doubt his sincerity, but I do wonder at his lack of wisdom.
Your argument also seems to be partially this: all the aspects of
Hindu spirituality should be reclaimed from Western sanitisation,
i.e. making it palatable to the West.
Neverthless, Patanjali's Yoga Sutras are clear about the role of
brahmacharya in the path towards realisation. Also, there are
warnings about the danger of merely acquiring siddhis. And all
this long before the "sanitisation" for the sake of the Western
audience.
In Tantric Yoga, there is the distinction between the Right Hand
practice and the Left Hand practice. Ramakrishna belonged to
the Right hand practice. His worship of Kali and his visions were
in the context of devotional Bhakti Hinduism. He was also
influenced by Ram Prasad. There is no suggestion at all that
Ramakrishna fell away from bramhacharya.
Vivekanda wrote on all four of the traditional Yoga: Bhakti,Jnana,
Karma and Raja Yoga. He too followed in the tradition of Patanjali
Yoga Sutras.
Adi Sankara's Sri Vidya was also meditational, using the mandalas,
the diagrams etc. And Devi worship follows this tradition. Again,
brahmacharya. Saktism also has a distinction between Left Hand and
Right. The Devi Mahatmyam is used by devotees who follow the Right
Hand tradition and as well Adi Sankara's Sri Vidya.
The other Tantric practices from the Left Hand tradition are not
largely practised except in certain places and by certain individuals.
I am not sure if even the Naga sadhus go to meditate in graveyards
or whether Kundalini Yoga followers practise the yogin-yogini practices.
Possibly Osho, yes, and his followers.
Anyhow, the article has set to rest much speculation. We can all turn
to the political scene with the new Gadkari team and Baba Ramdev's
initiative in starting a new political party.
You point out correctly that Swami Nityananda's social work raised the
ire of missionaries who were challenged by them.
Thanks for a remarkable investigative article.
Regards,
Vijaya
__________________________________________________________________
The new Internet Explorer® 8 - Faster, safer, easier. Optimized for Yahoo! Get it Now for Free! at http://downloads.yahoo.com/ca/internetexplorer/
__________________________________________________________________
Connect with friends from any web browser - no download required. Try the new Yahoo! Canada Messenger for the Web BETA at http://ca.messenger.yahoo.com/webmessengerpromo.php
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